Track and field

Wednesday marked National Signing Day for high school standouts around the country, and numerous student-athletes throughout Marin County signed letters of intent. The following is a list of local prep athletes committed to playing in college.

Marin prep sports teams and individuals were exceptional in 2017, winning numerous North Coast Section and state titles. Here are some of the top moments from the county’s prep sports scene in 2017, in no particular order.

Indoor and outdoor sports and activities in Marin at the youth, prep, college, adult and recreational levels have all been affected by the poor air quality from the North Bay fires. All Marin County high school games and practices have been postponed through Sunday as fall sports teams — cross country, football, girls golf, girls tennis, girls volleyball, water polo — have been unable to practice or play all week.

After winning the MCAL championship once again, Redwood is returning as solid as ever. The Giants are led by two of the state’s top runners, junior Liam Anderson and senior Gillian Wagner. Last year, Anderson and Wagner were ranked number one and two in the state, respectively.

Nicco Pompili has been doing a lot surfing lately, a relatively new interest for the Drake junior. He’s also been doing a lot of running, too, but that’s to be expected of one of the top runners on one of the strongest cross country teams in Marin County.

Linda Broderick Gill, the last Marin prep female to win a California state track and field title, 41 years ago, died on Monday, Aug. 28. The San Anselmo resident had been battling glioblastoma — the same type of brain tumor recently diagnosed in Sen.

Long-time track coach Bill Taylor arrives at the Sleepy Hollow Swim Club for a dinner in his honor in San Anselmo on Saturday. Taylor spent 39 years coaching at Drake High in addition to being a decorated runner in his own right.

Races are usually judged a success if, simply, most runners have fun and no one gets hurt or lost. But every now and then something special happens, as was the case at the inaugural Couples Relay in Larkspur in 1980.

This time last year, 14-year-old William Holden-Wingate was crushed by the disappointment of placing sixth in the pentathlon at the USATF Junior Olympics Regional meet. Just one spot away from continuing onto Nationals, he vowed to train his hardest and earn a spot in the top five the next year.

Northbound lanes on the Golden Gate Bridge will be closed from 6 to 9 a.m. Sunday for the San Francisco Marathon in response to concerns about terrorism. The marathon will use the span for part of the race, in which 15,000 runners are expected to participate.

With playoff soccer reaching the track and field season, Ross began the spring at a disadvantage. Looking back on her sophomore campaign, though, that’s hard to believe. “I guess something clicked,” she said.

Anderson capped a remarkable sophomore year with a fourth-place finish at state in the 1,600 meters. Anderson, the only underclassman to place in the top 12, clocked in at 4 minutes, 11.74 seconds. In the 3,200, Anderson recorded a time of 9:21.

What he did: Anderson placed fourth in the 1,600 meters with a time of 4 minutes, 11.74 seconds at state in Clovis on Saturday. Anderson, who was the only underclassmen to finish in the top 12 in the mile, recorded a time of 9:21.

San Marin High School’s gym filled with cheers and applause this week as the Novato school board threw its full support behind stadium lights. Before an audience that filled the gym’s bleachers and floor, Novato Unified School District trustees on Tuesday unanimously signed off on the project that has divided school neighbors, parents and students.

With numerous top-seven performances at Saturday’s North Coast Section Redwood Empire track and field championships, Marin County will be well represented at next week’s NCS Meet of Champions in Berkeley.

The Novato school board has cleared the way for a final vote on whether to allow stadium lighting at San Marin High School. Before a large and divided crowd, the district Board of Trustees voted 6-1, with Trustee Ross Millerick opposed, to approve certification of an environmental impact report for the project.

The Novato School District board approved an environmental impact report for proposed San Marin High stadium lights. Reporter @StephanieWeldy1 posts live. Join the conversation on Twitter with #NovatoSchoolBoard.

What he did: For the second straight spring, Herrerias swept the hurdles at the MCAL championships, winning the 110 (15.42 seconds) and 300 (41.48) races. What he said: “I was happy with my 110 performance, even though I hit a bunch of the hurdles.

Redwood High’s Nava Kohn is still learning with every meet, which is a terrifying notion for sprinters around the county. The freshman didn’t know she was supposed to yell “stick” when handing the baton off during the 4x100 relay in Saturday’s MCAL track and field championships at San Marin.

Four-time Olympic gold medal sprinter Michael Johnson has placed his San Rafael home for sale at the asking price of just under $3.2 million. The 4.500-square-foot home, in the pricey Dominican University-area Country Club neighborhood at 87 Brodea Way, has five bedrooms, four baths, and is on an approximately 1-acre lot.

The Marin Catholic High School administration has pulled the plug — for now — on a plan to install lights on its athletic field. Marin Catholic President Tim Navone withdrew the Kentfield school’s application from the county planning department on Thursday, according to senior planner Jocelyn Drake.

Drake High track and field coach Robyn Berry has watched two boys meets this season — the latter with first place on the line — come down to the final event: the 4x400-meter relay. Against Terra Linda, the Pirates won the event and meet thanks to a disqualification.

The neighborhood impact of proposed stadium lights at San Marin High School would be minimal, but not so the noise from the nighttime crowd and upgraded public address system, according to an environmental analysis.

Jason Jacobson was not much older than the student-athletes he coached when he was hired to lead the San Rafael High cross country team. It took the 24-year-old three or four years before he felt comfortable with the system and philosophy he implemented.

Tam High’s Lauren Ross approached pole vault coach Randy Hixon early last spring during her second high school track and field practice. The inquisitive freshman was fairly new to the sport, but her goals remained lofty.

What she did: Teel led the Mustangs to a season-opening victory against Marin Catholic on Thursday by winning the 800 meters (2 minutes, 36 seconds), 1,600 (5:44), 3,200 (13:01) and placing second in the triple jump (30-00.

Anderson burst onto the scene at the North Coast Section championships in 2015 as an unassuming freshman. He finished second in the race — just behind senior teammate Andy Ehrenberg — and owned the day’s top time among freshmen.

Celebrating the Drake High girls track and field team’s North Coast Section title in 1978 — the first of three consecutive — at the postseason banquet, coach Bill Taylor made a promise that shaped the next 38 years of his life.

Cerkel Peluso was such a great track and field athlete, her long jump of 17 feet, 9 inches in 1981 ranked 10th on the Marin County Athletic League’s all-time list. She was an eighth-grader at the time, representing St.

In one of the most outstanding feats by a Marin runner in many years, Kentfield’s Brian Pilcher broke four major age-60 American road race records, all of them decades old, in a single race. At the Chicago Marathon on Oct.

The Redwood High machine keeps churning out quality distance runners and it’s not unreasonable to think both the boys and girls high school cross-country teams could repeat as undefeated MCAL champs in 2016.

No Marin family has garnered more honors in the running world — certainly over the past 40 years, and likely ever — than the Schmitts of Kent Woodlands. That all five family members — parents Tom (age 53) and Laura (52) and children Jake (29), Meagan (26) and Caitlin (24) — could compile such extraordinary résumés surely defies chance.

The first time Paul Law attempted to clear a steeple, he jumped and landed in three feet of water, a soggy first encounter with what is now one of his favorite track and field events. “I didn’t know how deep the pit was so I was almost fully submerged in it,” Law joked.

Having posted a qualifying time at the San Francisco State Distance Carnival that was historically good enough to qualify for the NCAA west regionals, former Drake High track standout Clayton Hutchins had to sweat it out for a couple of weeks as guys around the country continued to post fast times.

Ariel Dunbar San Marin, senior Dunbar made her 300-meter hurdles debut at the annual preseason all-comers meet at Drake High this spring. It was a race to forget for the senior, who tripped and rolled into an opponent’s lane.

Max Glasser Marin Catholic, sophomore In his first track practice at Marin Catholic, a freshman Glasser ran 300 meters in 37 seconds. Coach Wayne Patton could not help but smile thinking about the next four years.

What he did: The junior, who finished third in the long jump at the North Coast Section Meet of Champions, finished 29th (19 feet, 6 1/4 inches) in the state prelims and fifth among non-seniors. What he said: “It was an awesome learning experience, to say the least.

Ryan Sacks felt conflicted watching Sanjay Kettles, the best long jumper in the North Coast Section, struggle at last weekend’s NCS Meet of Champions in Berkeley. After two scratches — a third meaning disqualification — the Tam High junior considered approaching Kettles to suggest he attempt a safety jump (less than full speed, but enough to advance).

What he did: The junior set a personal record on Saturday in the 800 meters, recording a third-place time of 1:55.07 in the North Coast Section Meet of Champions in Berkeley. The top-three finish qualified Thomas for state.